There are a lot of journalists I respect for putting themselves in harm’s way — journalists who chronicle wars, report on conditions in refugee camps, challenge the lies of repressive political regimes, or otherwise gather information that wouldn’t be disseminated save for risking their lives.

That isn’t what CNN and Velshi were doing. If standing in hurricanes for hours at a time were necessary to report on them, newspaper staffers would do it too. On TV, a camera mounted on a street corner might not be as entertaining. It might lack the drama of a human being in danger.

But it would adequately convey all the newsworthy information.

All in all, the still images captured by the pro photographers have all been almost unanimously more impressive than any video, with or without a reporter standing in the middle of it.

About the blogger

Bob Collins has been with Minnesota Public Radio since 1992, emigrating to Minnesota from Massachusetts where he was vice president of programming for Berkshire Broadcasting Company. Previously, he was an editor at the RKO Radio network in New York, and WHDH Radio in Boston. He is the founder of the MPR News’ website.

Considering that DSLRs can do video these days, I can imagine some pretty powerful video pieces with a Photojournalism ethos…I’d just expect to see them on the New York Times rather than on Cable news.

When done right though, the immediacy of live news can be striking. Best example I can think of is the cameras following Giuliani on 9/11.